Welcome to the crazy
by Lluvia-the-Wolfgirl
Summary: Different sorts of rebirth endings, people turning into things, and general craziness. Just small pieces of craziness that could have happened in Silent Hill. In other words, some of this will be crackfic.
1. What doesn't kill you

He really should've known better than to accept medicine from Lisa- especially after her behavior at the sanatorium and then the theater.

But his head had been pounding so hard, and he hadn't been getting anywhere- he'd almost been convinced that Alessa couldn't be real, but almost was the key word. He couldn't truly believe that. Maybe he had imagined seeing her a couple times, but he was sure that he'd met her at least once.

He'd accepted the glass Lisa offered him - she said it would help him clear his head and he'd thought she'd been telling the truth.

He'd been wrong.

A new pain had come, and then intensified and then spread throughout his body. It felt like fire, like molten lava was flowing through his veins and setting his body on fire from the inside out.

He wasn't aware he'd dropped the glass, didn't see it shattering on the floor- he didn't notice Lisa backing away, fear in her eyes.

He was only aware of the pain- it suddenly intensified in his hands and fingers and he yelled-almost screamed- as they twisted, growing and changing- scales appeared and his nails grew and sharpened. The scales spread, running along his arms and then his torso, quickly followed by just as drastic changes inside his body.

Travis dropped to his hands and knees.

He opened his mouth to scream but a roar, a noise like one a dinosaur would make, came bursting out of his throat.

Wings sprouted, ripping out of his back.

The scales and the inside changes had chased themselves up and down his torso- they were moving down his legs (there was a tail now, bursting out like the wings) and running around in his head.

He shook it, gasping at the pain, trying to get this thing to go away, to get out of him-

The transformation reached his toes and finished- he collapsed to the ground, panting.

After a minute, his eyes blinked open to see black Mary Janes on front of his face.

He knew who it had to be, even before she slowly knelt down and looked him in the face. He hadn't heard her coming, but then, he never seemed to.

"Travis?"

Weird. She actually sounds worried.

"Travis?" Her hand brushes against his face, gently, and he groans.

Her hand is nice and cool- Travis realizes that he's halfway feverish, and dizzy as anything, although that was beginning to fade.

"Travis?" she did sound worried.

Travis coughed, and struggled, then managed to get his voice to work. "Yeah?"

She flung her arms around his neck. "It worked! I made it so the poison didn't kill you!"

"…what?"

"The Order knows you're helping me, so they wanted you dead. They gave Lisa something that would kill you-"

"It was poison?" the nurse whimpered, pressed against the door, hand over her mouth.

Alessa sat there a moment, then pulled back and looked at Lisa.

The two females stared at each other.

Travis couldn't see Alessa's face, as she was turned away, just staring at the nurse, but he could see Lisa's face- she no longer looked quite so horrified, but the fear was still there. Her hands were on the floor now, almost as if she was trying to brace herself.

"You treated me very kindly," Alessa said at last, beginning to walk forward. "You were very nice to me- but you work for the Order and you hurt Travis. If I hadn't changed it you would have killed him."

"I didn't know."

"No, you didn't. But you should've. You should know better." Alessa paused as if considering something, then reached forward, slowly, and placed her hand on Lisa's forehead.

Lisa shuddered and stared at Alessa- and then she began to hacking and changed positions, so she was on her knees and vomiting.

Alessa stood behind her and one arm was wrapped around her in a half hug, and the other patted her head. "Good girl. Throw it all up- get rid of all that yucky stuff inside you."

Travis couldn't see the blonde nurse anymore- Alessa blocked his view.

But the feverish sensations and the dizziness were fading. He didn't understand what happened to his body- he glanced down at himself.

Black scales and claws met his eyes. Disbelieving, he twitched, telling his fingers to move, make a fist, do anything-

The claws twitched- huge black things that could easily rip a man's heart out- and then curled.

Travis grunted. Somehow, he wasn't as shocked as he should have been. But then, reality seemed to have given up on him a long time ago. At least this would make dealing with the monsters easier.

Slowly, stretching, trying to adjust to this changed body, he moved, made his way to his feet- his four feet- and shook his head, stretched wings, lashed tail- he didn't look himself over, not yet. That he wasn't ready for quite yet.

"Alessa?" he whispered, padding closer.

The retching noises had stopped. Hopefully that was a good sign.

Alessa looked over her shoulder at him. For half a second, she just looked at him- and then she smiled. There was a touch of hesitancy about it- as if she had something to show him, and hoped he would like it but wasn't quite sure. "Look Travis," she whispered back, "I helped Lisa get rid of all the yucky stuff."

She was holding a baby. It was wrapped in Lisa's red sweater, while the rest of her things- uniform, hat, armband, shoes- were scattered on the floor, among the remnants of the "yucky stuff" that Lisa had puked up.

The baby was small, blonde, and looking around curiously with big green eyes.

She didn't seem to see Travis.

Alessa began to rock her gently, her face thoughtful. "I need to find her a good family- someone who will take care of her."

Travis took a step forward and almost stumbled. The awkwardness of the motion made him remember his changed body.

"The orphanage is a bad place," Alessa continued thoughtfully. "The Order runs it, so she can't go there. Hey Travis, how do you find nice people to raise babies?"

"Well, generally there's a whole system you go through- but I wouldn't trust the system in this type of town…" Travis trailed off as a thought entered his mind. He wasn't sure it was a good idea, but at the same time, he couldn't stop thinking about it.

"Travis?"

And apparently Alessa could read his facial expressions. Great.

"I have a friend named Dan, who lives in Brahms. He and his wife are good people- and they don't have any kids. And they won't ever. Laura's body-" he wonders how to explain it to a child. "Her body won't make babies, even though she wants it to."

"They'll take care of her?"

"Yeah, they would."

What worries Travis is the thought of her growing up like before and breaking Dan and Laura's hearts. But in addition to being the nicest people he knows, they were also among the wisest.

If anyone could help Lisa grow up wiser, they'd be the ones.

Alessa smiled fondly down at the baby, who had apparently decided that she was in good hands, because she gave a happy, burbling laugh.

And somehow, something in Travis's heart eased when he heard that. And he knew everything would be okay.

"Travis?" Alessa's voice had gotten quieter again- almost shy sounding. "Can I ride on your back?"

"I don't know, I haven't seen my back recently. Is there anywhere you can ride?"

"Uh huh, I can see a spot."

"Alright," Travis said, crouching down, "but I don't know how I'm going to get out that door, let alone explain this- I don't suppose you can turn me back to normal, can you?"

"Sorry," Alessa said, snuggling into his back in a way that somehow touched his heart. "I mean, I know there is a way, I just don't know what is. I was in a hurry, because I was afraid you were going to die… you aren't mad, are you?"

"…not at you." Travis answered truthfully. "Come on, let's get out of here."


	2. Going home

"Josh, wait!"

He didn't of course, only sprinting faster and practically diving into the amusement park entrance.

Alex mentally ran through a list of swearwords in his head. Still, Josh was mostly staying in sight this time- it didn't seem like he was trying to lose Alex, more like he was taunting him- or leading him somewhere.

Of course, the fact that they were running through the decaying streets of the Otherworld meant he couldn't stop worrying either.

Alex passed through the amusement park gates and reality shifted around him- the sense of the ground moving and shifting beneath his feet, almost sucking him in, almost causing him to stumble.

Alex got to his feet and looked around-

The park looked- well, not normal. But it didn't look like something out of a nightmare anymore either.

The flags no longer looked like they were dripping blood, the mannequins in the store front windows no longer looked like they were corpses of murder victims- he did kind of get the feeling that they were watching him though-

"Alex!" came the impatient call.

"Coming Josh!" Alex called, starting to run again. Hey- wait a minute- where was his uniform jacket? Never mind, he'd come back and find it later, once he caught up with Josh and finally convinced him to stop running away- but how had he lost it?- it wasn't like he'd unfastened it or left it open or anything. Never mind, he'd worry about it later.

Josh was headed into the Wild West area of the park. He passed out of sight briefly, behind the corner of the entrance- Alex sped up and entered behind him-and then jumped as a lasso nearly grabbed him.

"Yeehaw partner!" Josh cheered, in a horrible imitation of a western accent, before running off again.

Alex got to his feet and started after him- he couldn't stop now-he had to catch up to Josh.

He followed his little brother into the Pirate's Playground area of the park.

There was a boom, and Alex instinctively dodged-and then heard Josh's giggles and realized that it was just sound effects and a decorative cannon.

Alex got to his feet, feeling sheepish and frustrated.

Josh was still standing there, still giggling, but quieter.

"You think that's funny, huh?" Alex asked, tensing himself and preparing to run, but keeping his tone light hearted.

"Yep." Josh answered cheerfully, giving a little jump. "Come on, let's get back to playing! You're still it!"

"You know Josh, I'm getting kinda tired here- why don't we just call it a day and get out of here?"

Josh pouted. "Just one more game Alex! Just catch me once, and then we'll be done, okay?"

Alex considered this. He hated to disappoint his brother and the monsters had disappeared... Josh was acting normal again too, and so long as they stayed together, it should be fine, right? "Alright, but this is the last game, understand? And no leaving this area either!"

"Promise!" Josh said easily, "Thanks Alex! Now, ready or not, here I go!"

And the chase started off again. Alex still tried as hard as he could to catch him but Josh's laid back attitude and cheerful chatter, not to mention that fact that Alex was catching up, had reassured him, and he didn't feel as desperate as he had before.

"Ahoy mateys!" Josh called out, strutting down the deck of the play ship. "I, the famous pirate captain Josh, captain of the ship-" he paused for a moment then grinned as he thought of a name "the Happy Little Monster, am on a treacherous voyage to find the lost treasure of the pirate queen Alessa!"

Alex peeked over the edge of the ramp that led up to the deck, then ducked down as Josh looked around.

"Oh no! The Navy caught up to us! Fight mateys fight!" Josh fenced with an invisible foe for a minute, giving Alex the time he needed to sneak aboard and hide behind the cannons.

"Ha, they're retreating!" Josh crowed, running over to the cannons.

Alex slowly, slowly, cautiously, began to creep closer while Josh shouted orders to his imaginary crew- and then he struck. "Tag! I got you Josh!" he cried, wrapping his hand around Josh's ankle- and then he frowned. His voice sounded… weird.

Josh didn't seem to notice though. "Aw," he said with a half hearted scowl. "You got me! I-"

"Josh! Alex! Come on boys, time to move on!"

"Aw," Josh said again, and grabbed Alex's hand and began pulling him towards the slide, "Come on Alex, time to go."

"Josh what-"

And then they were going down the slide, Josh laughing, and they tumbled out at the bottom.

Before he had a chance to move, Alex was picked up.

Arms went around him, lifting him up and up, so he wasn't even touching the ground- his feet dangled briefly, before the arms shifted and tucked him closer.

"There you are." It was a woman, dark haired and dark eyed. She was holding Alex tightly, but gently. She hugged him and kissed the top of his head. "Ready to go?" and then she frowned. "Alex, where's your jacket?"

Alex winced. "I lost it," he mumbled. His parents always got really mad whenever he lost anything.

"Oh Alex," the woman sighed, not scolding- her eyes were kind as she brushed the top of his head-and turned and walked over to a stroller, one of those big ones with two seats and a cover you pull over part of the top. She pulled out a child-sized blanket, thick and warm looking. She carefully wrapped him in it, before putting in the back seat of the stroller.

"I wanna walk Mom." Josh announced, "Can I?"

"Sure, but you have to hold either my hand or your father's."

"Dad?" Alex asked weakly, fidgeting. The blanket was nice and warm and he really didn't want to leave it- but he needed to be able to move and look around and see what was going on!

"He's right over there honey," the woman said, coming into view again as she knelt by the stroller. She leaned in and kissed Alex affectionately. "Did you and your brother have a fun time on the ship?"

"Uh huh," Alex said, searching her face. He didn't know her- Alex was almost sure he didn't know her- but at the same time…

She'd kissed him- kissed him twice. No one had ever done that to him before. Sometimes their mom would kiss Josh like that, but their dad had been telling her to stop, because Josh was getting older and getting closer to being an adult-

"Good, I'm glad you two had fun," the woman said, smiling. She had a nice smile- kind eyes- Alex couldn't look away from them- her eyes met yours and acknowledged you-

She was talking to him and Josh like she knew them- and she knew their names too- and she talked to them and smiled at them like she loved them- like she was-

"Dad!" Josh called happily, and both the woman and Alex turned to watch Josh run up to and hug a dark haired man who was carrying a couple of stuffed animals.

The woman moved out of his vision and the stroller began moving towards Josh and the man. They seemed to be completely comfortable with each other- Josh was a friendly kid, but even so, there was always space he kept between him and strangers, or between him and people he didn't feel comfortable with. There was no space between them here- and Josh had just called him-

Alex didn't recognize the man- but he couldn't say he looked unfamiliar either.

"…and then we played tag." Josh finished.

"Well, I'm glad that you two had fun. I got this for you." He handed one of the stuffed animals to Josh-it looked like some sort of floppy-eared puppy dog.

Alex was expecting the other stuffed animal to be handed to Josh after a half minute of waiting, like always, but instead, the man just ruffled Josh's hair, causing him to laugh happily, and then walked over to Alex in the stroller.

"How are you doing buddy? Did you have fun too?"

"Uh huh," Alex said, searching the man's face. He had a nice face- he had kind eyes, like the woman's.

Something about them- about both of them- made Alex feel safe.

The man handed Alex the other stuffed animal. It was a soft plush turtle. Alex hugged it, gently, but quickly looked up at the man again.

"It's for me?"

"Yeah, of course it's yours," the man said, sounding surprised. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Mine to keep?" Alex asked, just to make sure.

"Of course it's yours Alex. I just gave it to you." The man sounded… almost upset that Alex was expecting it to get taken away. "Do you not like it or something?"

"No- no. I like it." Alex looked down at it. It had a nice smiley face and it was fun to squish and hug.

Alex shook his head.

He wasn't supposed to be thinking like that! He wasn't a kid! He was-

The stroller was moving again, the woman pushing it, and the man and Josh were walking alongside, and they were talking about something- Alex wasn't sure what- he was having problems focusing.

There were other people around, Alex noticed suddenly. People walking past them, people going into the shops, people screaming happily on the rides.

Where had all the people come from? The park had been empty when he'd been chasing Josh… hadn't it?

And Josh- he looked smaller, but he looked bigger at the same time…

Alex was confused.

"Hey guys, we need to stop here," the woman said, the stroller coming to a stop even as she spoke.

"What is it?"

"It's that time again-and as you oh-so-helpfully reminded me, it's my turn." Her tone was teasing as she spoke to the man, and she gently picked up Alex and untangled him from his blanket. "Hey Alex, we need to leave your turtle friend behind okay? We're going to leave him here with Dad and Josh, but we'll be back in a minute okay?"

"Okay," Alex said a little doubtfully. He didn't want to leave Josh, but he and the man were sitting down next to the stroller- (They promise him they're going to wait? Wave? Alex suddenly wonder how she's lifting him?) and waiting, and Josh had promised not to run off anymore-

He was looking over the woman's shoulder as she was carrying him, so he didn't realize they were going into the ladies' side of the restroom until they were inside and he saw a lady come out from one of the stalls they passed.

He yelped and hid his face in the woman's shoulder.

"What is it Alex?"

"We're on the girl's side!" he whispered anxiously, "I'm a boy, I'm not supposed to be here!"

She laughed softly. "It's okay, sweetie. You're a little boy, and it's okay for little boys to come into the girl's side with their mommies."

They'd reached the diaper changing station and she'd pulled it down from the wall.

"Mommy?" Alex whispered. Josh had called her "Mom" earlier, and he'd called the man "Dad"- but these people weren't their parents!… were they?

She had dark hair, the way their mom did, but this lady had hair that was shorter and darker, and it moved when she did. Her eyes were darker too, but they were also the type of eyes that focused right on you and really saw you-

The woman placed him on the diaper changing table and Alex realized what she was going to do. He tried to squirm away.

"No!" he protested.

"Alex, don't. You could fall." It was firmly, but gently spoken.

"But-"

"Alex." She placed her hand under his chin and meets his eyes. "You have a dirty diaper. You want to stay in the dirty diaper?"

"No," Alex said miserably. Somehow, he hadn't noticed it until now, but- the woman was right. Still-

"Then let me change it, okay?"

"Can't I do it myself?"

"No Alex, that's my job." And she set about it.

Alex didn't want his diaper changed-he didn't want a diaper at all. But this diaper was dirty- it felt yucky- and all his clothes had disappeared somehow, and he didn't know where they were-so he was stuck with the diaper and the kiddy clothes he was wearing.

So he was a good boy and didn't fuss while his diaper was changed.

When it was over and everything was done, she picked him up and kissed him on the top of the head. "There, isn't that better?"

"…I guess so," Alex mumbled. He kinda liked it when she kissed him, but at the same time, he didn't want to be treated like a baby. His thumb nearly entered his mouth, but he noticed it and pulled it away.

"Well, after we got started, you did a good job Alex," she said affectionately as she started walking again.

"…where are we going now?"

"We're going back outside where they're waiting for us."

"Oh-wait!"

"What?"

Alex had caught sight of his reflection in the mirror.

He wiggled a little, trying to get closer. Apparently guessing his intention, she walked closer, stopping right in front of the mirror.

Alex reached out a hand and pressed it against the glass. The baby in the mirror did the same thing. The dark-haired, hazel-eyed baby in the mirror.

Alex whimpered. The sound escaped from him- he hated it, he sounded weak, he wasn't supposed to be weak, couldn't let himself be weak-

The woman shifted, bringing him around so he couldn't see the mirror anymore and hugged him. "Hey, what's the matter? Are you cold?"

"I'm small."

"No, you're not. You're perfect," she said it lovingly. "You're perfectly healthy, and maybe I'm just a bit biased because I'm your mother, but I think you're very handsome. Come on, let's get back to the others."

She walked outside, and Josh popped up from where he was sitting with the man and ran over to them.

"Finally! You guys were in there forever!"

Alex was wrapped in the blanket again- he didn't resist, the blanket was nice and warm and it was cold outside- and Alex hugged the turtle, trying to think.

He was small. Very small. Even smaller than Josh.

Alex had been big though. Hadn't he?

But they weren't acting like he'd ever been big- not even Josh, who should know that he was supposed to be big.

They'd stopped again. This time, Josh was the reason they'd stopped. He wanted to go on the plane ride, and he was convincing the man to go on it with him. The man seemed reluctant, but allowed himself to be convinced and the two entered the ride line, while the woman found a bench and parked the stroller.

Alex grabbed at her sleeve. "Want to see." That hadn't really been what he'd meant to say, but it got his point across.

She looked reluctant.

"Please Mommy?" Okay, that had not been he'd meant to say. He really really hadn't meant to say it.

But she smiled at him so happily and picked him up and hugged him, so he didn't take it back.

Wrapped in his blanket and in her arms, Alex watched them- Josh and the man- get in the plane and he watched as the ride began. They both looked happy… Alex couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Josh look so happy… so carefree.

Their parents had always given josh what he wanted, but never in the way he wanted it.

"This is weird," Alex mumbled, "I don't get it."

"You're tired, huh?" the woman said sympathetically. "I don't blame you, I'm kind of tired myself. It's been a long day. Don't worry, after this ride, we're going home."

"Home?"

"That's right, home. I bet you miss Soldier Bear, huh? He's sitting up waiting for you so the two of you can be tucked in together."

Alex scowled half-heartedly. "Not a baby. Don' need to be tucked in."

"True, your birthday is coming up soon," she chuckled softly. "Which reminds me- when we see Elle and her parents tomorrow, you want to invite her to your birthday party, right?"

"Elle?" Alex asked, perking up.

"That's right, Elle. You want her to come to your party, right?"

"Yeah!" Alex cheered. Elle was his very best friend. They always had fun together. Any party that had Elle was sure to be fun!

The ride ended, and Josh and the man returned.

"That was fun! Thanks for going with me Dad!"

"No problem, that was fun- even if I did lose my hat." They laughed, and the man reached down to ruffle Josh's hair.

Josh was happy here- with these people. And the mother treated Alex like she loved him too- she even was going to let him have a birthday party and invite Elle to come.

The mother stood up and the others came closer and Josh flung his arms around her, hugging her.

"Hey Mom, did you see? We went high!"

"Yeah, I saw. You did go high, didn't you?" She bent over slightly to hug him back and Josh reached up to pat Alex on the head.

"Can we come back when Alex is big enough to ride the rides with us?"

"Sure, sounds like a good idea to me. Do you want to come back and go on the rides once you're big enough Alex?"

"Okay," Alex agreed. It sounded like fun.

She moved- about to return Alex to the stroller- when the man spoke up.

"Actually, I'd like to carry Alex for a while."

"Okay then, here-" and Alex was carefully handed to the father, still bundled in the fuzzy blue blanket.

The man shifted him in his arms, as if he wasn't quite sure how to hold him, before finding a good position and they began walking again.

The man had his arms wrapped Alex, and his head was turned so he face the man's chest, so he couldn't see anything. But he could hear Josh talking with the mother- their mother?- about going home. Josh sounded disappointed, but he wasn't whining- and then he started talking about his stuffed puppy dog and how he had named it Leon.

Josh was happy. Josh was safe. And they were together.

And Alex felt safe. Safe and warm - and both the parents held him gently, like they really loved him-

Alex blinked drowsily.

They were going home. Home was a safe place, right?

He found his thumb was in his mouth. When had that snuck in there? And what was he sucking on it for? He wasn't a- except he was, somehow. He'd ridden in a stroller, been taken into the ladies side of the restroom and had his diaper changed- and now he was sucking on his thumb.

Alex's eyes flickered.

He was tired- sleepy.

They were leaving- going home. They were safe and warm and loved-

Alex slipped into sleep.

OoOoOo

Cheryl pulled the other blanket out from the back of the car and carefully tucked it around Josh, who responded with a sleepy "thanks Mommy."

"No problem honey." and she gently kissed him on the forehead as he drifted off to sleep.

She looked up to see her husband staring down at the toddler he'd just buckled into his car seat. Alex was still sleeping, a happy smile on his face.

"He's so small." it's spoken softly, as he adjusts the blanket around him.

"Yeah." Cheryl said softly, fondness filling her voice-fondness for this man she loves, and for these boys that are now hers, "come on, let's go home." she shuts the door as softly as possible, and then moves to the driver's seat, before he stops her.

"Hey, hold up."

"What?"

"There's no way I'm letting you drive. You and cars are a bad combination, remember?"

She laughs but switches sides without arguing.

As they began buckling up, she said "You know, I'm relieved. I didn't expect things to go this smoothly."

"Yeah, tell me about it. I thought for sure we'd have to deal with a freak out and a temper tantrum."

She laughed again, still softly. "Well, we have plenty of things to look forward to… toilet training, the teen years-"

"Stop!" he covered his ears with his hands. "One thing at a time please. Let's just go home now."

She leaned over and kissed him, suddenly, briefly- he kissed her back, slowly- as if still finding it hard to believe that she was actually there with him.

After a minute, she pulled back, mindful of the kids in the back seat. "Yeah, let's go home," she said softly.

He smiled at her and started up the car-and they drove away into the night.

OoOoOo

Yes, this is so much crack- crack that I had to get out of my system. Also- I deliberately left the identity of the man vague- it can be anyone you want. Most people don't share my OTP for this series- and fond as I am of Alex/Elle, they're not it.

"Happy little monster" is one of my favorite tracks by Christophe Frutuoso, by the way. ^^ Yay for Silent Hill fan music!


	3. Into the night

This is the story that could've been- or, less poetically, this is what happened when I saw all the trailers for Shattered Memories and got excited, and then was totally disappointed when it actually came out. These are just the scene fragments that were already written. Warning: slight Travis/Cheryl shipping ahead!

OoOoOo

They say it's better for you to go and do something, instead of just sitting at home and waiting. Thinking.

_"You never knew your father and you never will."_

Those words keep echoing in her head.

She's tired of this.

It's snowing outside. She's always hated it and loved it… the snow. Been fascinated by it. Big fat flakes drift in the wind, falling against the window, turning the whole world white… covering everything.

She grabs her small black purse, the one that's always packed, and a coat, and just leaves.

Maybe she'll call when she gets wherever she's going. Maybe.

On the highway, she hitches a ride from a truck driver.

After she climbs in and shuts the door, he looks at her. He glances at her as if concerned, then shakes his head and turns back to the road. "Where are you headed?"

"Anywhere but here," she says, turning away from deep brown eyes that look as if they see through her. "Know of any places that are hiring?"

"You're running away, aren't you?"

"…I think once I turned 18 it stopped being running away and became just plain "leaving"."

"I'm not talking about leaving without saying goodbye. I'm talking about leaving when there's still something you need to face."

"…maybe," she says softly. "But…I don't think so. I think I've found out all I can from talking to shrinks. I think…I think I need to go out and do something. Just live- you know?"

He looks at her a moment, then turns away and starts the truck, begins driving again.

Silence. The windshield wipers cross their paths once more and then again.

"I've got a friend," the trucker says suddenly. "Works as a detective. Bit of a slob. Needs someone to help him clean up his messes, take phone calls when he's out, that sort of thing."

She turns to look at him, and he's smiling at the road ahead.

Her "Thank you" is barely a whisper, but he hears it and looks back at her, gives his smile to her instead of the road for a moment before turning back.

She falls asleep as the radio plays and snow falls. It's some jazzy music that sounds almost familiar, but at the same time brand new.

OoOoOo

"So the entire cause of all of your issues is because right after your parents split up, your dad died in a car accident?" Douglas asked.

"Yeah," Cheryl said softly, looking down into the coffee mug.

The two men exchanged glances.

"Does the mind actually work like that?" Douglas asked.

"How should I know?" asked Travis, reaching for his own drink. "I'm no psychologist." He took a drink, and then sighed. "But to tell you the truth… mine doesn't work like that."

Cheryl looked up at him.

He shrugged. "Let's just say my parents had plenty issues of their own. By all accounts, I was lucky to come out with my head screwed on as straight as it is."

"I like your head," Cheryl said before coughing. "I mean, you seem pretty normal to me."

"Normal doesn't exist," Douglas said in his raspy voice. "But what's got him worried is why, when everything possible to screw him up has been done to him, why is he fine when you aren't?"

Silence.

"I-I'm telling you everything," Cheryl protested.

"No one accused you of lying. I just don't get it."

OoOoOo

He looks away from her nervous, freckled face and sighs, picking up the shotgun and standing up. "Well, whatever the truth is, who's ever fault this is," and he holds out his hand and pulls her up. "We're here now. Come on, let's go."

She nods, firm, but not trusting herself to speak. She follows behind him-

Travis isn't sure what's up with this girl-she's weak and she's strong. Her father's dead but he's been seen recently-his life was a lot less complicated before she showed up-and he'd guessed when she climbed into his cab that she was going to be trouble. But he can't leave her now.

It wouldn't be right. Besides, the kid's grown on him.

OoOoOo

She wears his clothes, too large jeans and a t shirt and his favorite plaid shirt that he bought with his first paycheck. She wraps her arms around herself, smiling at the way his clothes smell of him. Gas and warmth and earth and him…

She turns to smile at him as he enters the room. "I guess this is the second time you've saved my life, huh?"

"I guess," he says, handing her a cup of coffee, watered down with milk, before joining her on the couch.

"Thanks," she says, and sips it.

"No problem."

She tucks her legs up and rests against him.

He looks at her, but says nothing.

They just sat there like that, drinking their coffee for a while. Him, for once without his hat and in old jeans and a plain white t-shirt, and her in his rough-soft comforting flannel shirt, pressing against his bare arm.

"What are we going to do?" she asks finally, when their cups are half empty.

We. There's no denying that there is a "we" now. Travis isn't sure how "we" came to be, how it works or how it should work. He's not sure of much right now. "I don't know," he admits out loud and spur of the moment, without thinking, she shudders and he wraps his free arm around her. Things run through his mind as she presses herself against him, and he smells her hair, damp and with the lingering scent of his shampoo, still damp from the shower she took to wash off the chill of the lake.

"It'll be okay." "We'll think of something." Things like that run through his head. But he doesn't say any of them. He can't promise her anything like that.

So he just holds her, and she holds him, and when their coffee is gone, the cups are placed on the floor and eventually they drift off to sleep, her first while he holds her and looks down at her and wonders what comes next.

When she wakes up, she's still on the couch, still being held by him- she's safe and warm and despite the craziness and the fact that someone's trying to kill her, this is the happiest she's felt in a long long time. Despite the pain and the insanity… she feels at peace. She feels like she belongs, like she actually has a home and not just a place to hide.

She trusts him.

She moves slightly, looking at him, and his eyes flutter before opening and settling on her.

She thinks she just might love his eyes- dark brown-chocolate and coffee colored- open eyes that really, truly saw her.

"Good morning."

"Morning," he responds moving to stretch- and without devoting too much thought to it, she leans over and kisses him on the cheek.

"You're special. You know that? Thanks for everything." And she smiles at him, before getting up and moving to the kitchen.

She knows that he's staring after her, and she's suddenly afraid that she's messed everything up- calm down she tells herself. It's just a kiss on the cheek. She's unable to stop herself from glancing-very quickly- over her shoulder at him.

It's his move next. If he wants to be friends- if he wants-

It's his decision- his move.

End:

"You know your attraction to older men probably had something to do with all your issues and your attachment to your father?"

"As long as I don't start kissing my father that's okay right?" and her hands reached for his face, slowly and one finger touched him softly. "Besides, you know how loyal and one track I am."

He chuckles and then looks away as the lights turn on. People approach and her hands lower, as does her head, bangs hiding her face. "Cheryl, you're going to continue working at Douglas's, right?"

"…yeah. Why?"

"…I thought I should start dropping by more often, that's all. I mean, someone's got to keep an eye on you."


End file.
